


Starting Line

by Kyogre



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Age Changes, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Kink Meme
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-29
Updated: 2018-06-05
Packaged: 2019-05-15 05:09:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 20,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14784155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyogre/pseuds/Kyogre
Summary: Based on a request from the kinkmeme:https://personakinkmeme.dreamwidth.org/993.html?thread=99297#cmt99297After reading several fics of redeeming Akechi or how it was too late to save him I thought about what would happen if he was younger.Akechi has just awoken to his persona and has just started to explore mementos and places. The Phantom thief team are still the same age and have started to see a young black masked persona user running around mementos and some of the palaces. Curious and a bit concerned, the Phantom Thief Team tries to talk to the kid.In short they stop him before he kills anyone. Shido is still a very corrupt politician and maybe he is using Akechi to research the metaverse or he found another way to cause mental shutdowns.





	1. April & May

**Author's Note:**

> Just so we're clear, the AU setting:   
> -Akechi is two years younger than canon (Futaba’s age) and gets his powers at the same time as Joker.   
> -No prior rampages or mental shutdowns.   
> -Rampages start up after Kamoshida as Akechi goes to work for Shido.  
> -Wakaba was killed through normal means, but it was still presented as a suicide and pinned on Futaba.

**Notes:** urgh, playing fast and loose with the calendar and also everything in general. Pray for me.

~.~.~

**0\. April**

April 9th. That was the day it started — for both of them. Two Wild Cards, dragged into an unfair game, for the machinations of a cruel, lying god.

Stopping to check his phone’s navigation as he made his way through Shibuya for the first time, Ren frowned uncertainly. The screen had frozen and flickered in a way that did nothing to calm his already roiling stomach. The last thing he needed was something going wrong with his phone...

An icon he had never seen before popped up on the screen and expanded until it all but hid the map. He tried to swipe it aside, then tapped it irritably. His brow furrowed irritably as the eerie image refused to budge. ‘A virus?’ he thought unhappily.

Abruptly, he stopped, finger hovering over the screen.

It felt like his ears were ringing all of a sudden — but it was actually the opposite. The busy, booming crossing in front of him had gone silent and still between one moment and the next.

‘What the—?!’ Ren spun around frantically. The high school students in their uniforms, the office workers in their suits, everyone inexplicably stood frozen. It was impossible, but it was right in front of him, and his breathing hitched in growing panic. With his mouth going dry, he couldn’t even call out for... help? Proof that this was real?

Among the sea of frozen passersby, he didn’t notice the single one that wasn’t entirely still.

The top of a brown head, slightly shorter than the adults and hidden by the crowd. A second hand, beaten up phone in hand, glowing the same ominous red. A breathless, uncertain gaze turned in the same direction as Ren’s.

A dark blue flame sprang into the air, twisting and taking a strange form. It flared, as if spreading its wings, and Ren thought he saw something. A flash — of his own face, in an expression of glee he had never worn.

He gasped and stumbled back, colliding with the salaryman who had paused mid-step behind him. And, in the blink of an eye, it was over. The hubbub of the busy street washed over Ren again, like a crashing wave, or maybe like he’d finally managed to break the water’s surface. The salaryman spared him a sharp look without breaking pace as he continued on his way, just like everyone else around them.

The crossing was completely back to normal. ‘Did I... imagine all of that?’ Ren thought, with a sense of panic he barely managed to tamp down.

That must have been it. The stress of everything... he had blanked out a few times during the proceedings, hadn’t he? And his memory of the trial was practically non-existent. Things had been rough recently. It must have been just his imagination.

Still, with a shaky hand, he dragged the icon still on his screen to the recycle bin.

Letting out a short, sharp breath, Ren shook his head and forced himself to start moving again. It was still a long way to Yongen-Jaya and the next year of his life. He needed to pull himself together and make a good impression. Who knew what the man would think if Ren started spacing out like that in front him.

He didn’t realize that there was one person among the crowd who hadn’t returned to reality — a boy a year younger than him, in the uniform of an unfamiliar high school. No one noticed at all, continuing on their way.

~.~.~

**1\. May**

May. In just a month and a half, the Metaverse Nav had changed Ren’s life completely.

Joker’s life now, really. The other him he’d glimpsed that first day, the golden-eyed, gleeful him, had become part of him, coming to the surface whenever they stepped into the Metaverse. The weight of Joker’s mask settling on his face conversely felt like a weight being lifted, leaving him free to act with the confidence and self-assurance he’d lost after his arrest and sentencing.

He hadn’t been wrong. He wouldn’t stop fighting for his justice. He had teammates who shared his beliefs. And they had the power to strike back even at those who had made themselves untouchable.

Ann, Ryuji, Morgana, and now Yusuke. Kamoshida, and now Madarame.

Unfortunately, as they overcame the challenges of the art museum Palace and secured the infiltration route to the Treasure, Joker’s composure became increasingly a cover for Ren’s unease. On their fourth target and second Palace, he should have felt more certain of their odds. They knew that a change of heart was possible, and they knew what to do to make it work, after all. Their team was more experienced and had even grown by one.

And yet... Shadow Kamoshida — Suguru “Asmodeus” Kamoshida — had been their most powerful opponent by far. They’d made it through, but more by luck than anything. What if Shadow Madarame was even stronger? What if he hid some even more dangerous trick up his sleeves?

That was why, once the route was secured, Joker held off sending the calling card and instead hearded his team down into Mementos.

Lacking a target, they had been simply making a circuit of the accessible areas. No matter how many times they were ambushed or held up, the Shadows always returned for another round, but for the moment, the passages were empty as the Morgana-bus sped onward.

In the backseat, Fox made a wet, very ominous noise.

“Joker! Pull over!” Panther said, frantically patting his back. “He’s gonna hurl!”

“Again?!” Skull complained.

Mona screeched to a halt and tipped to the side, sending the lot of them tumbling out onto the tracks. While Fox immediately stumbled away, though thankfully keeping down the contents of his stomach, the Shujin students milled around next to the bus for a short break.

“Do you think we should head back?” Panther suggested.

“Yeah, we’ve gotten pretty good at stomping down the small-fries around here,” Skull added, “even Fox. Are we even getting anything out of hanging around here more?”

“Life Stones,” Joker replied seriously, referring to the winnings of their hold ups. But he considered Skull and Panther’s suggestion, leaning back against Mona with his arms crossed. Was there a point in continuing training here? They were right, the team wasn’t getting much out of it anymore. They were as ready as they would be.

Taking a deep breath, he was about to announce his decision — when the bus behind him suddenly poofed out of existence.

Joker tipped over backwards, losing balance from the disappearance of his support, but he managed to roll to his feet again deftly enough and shot an unimpressed look at once again mascot form Mona.

“Guys, pipe down,” Mona said with surprising sharpness. “I can sense something weird.”

The group immediately fell silent, Skull swallowing his protests and Yusuke straightening to look at the others with an almost unsettlingly intent gaze. Mona’s ears twitched as he did whatever it was he did to know more about the world around them, something Joker couldn’t replicate with all his different Personas.

“There’s something here,” he said finally. “I can’t get a good read on it at all, but it doesn’t feel like a normal Shadow. It just appeared too, which is weird... What should we do?”

Get closer or retreat, was what Mona meant.

They had been fighting all day, and even if the enemies were no longer proving a sufficient challenge, the invisible strain of battle had built up. They were all at least a little worn out, so was taking on some unknown quantity a wise move? What if it was something like the terrifying Reaper that Mona had told them about?

But on the other hand, even if it was something like that, didn’t they need to know about it? They would be returning to Mementos again, quite likely many times to come.

“Let’s check it out,” Joker decided. “But quietly. Don’t get close until we know what we’re dealing with.”

The human sounded off, acknowledging the leader’s instructions. “Maybe Skull should stay here then,” Mona suggested, then danced aside to dodge Skull’s retaliatory swipe.

Well, the cat wasn’t wrong exactly. “I’ll take the lead,” Joker said. “Mona, with me. Everyone else, follow from a distance.”

Their teasing fell away to a serious, focused determination as Mona leaped nimbly onto Joker’s shoulder and the others fell in behind him. They proceeded with silent steps, Mona whispering directions in his ear — turn here, it’s moved, we need to double back, a little further ahead, yes, we’re getting close.

“Just around the corner over there,” Mona murmured finally. “I can feel... A Shadow, from a human, and something else.”

Joker nodded sharply and held his hand up to stop the others. “Wait here,” he mouthed more than said. He’d take the last stretch alone, being the best at sneaking by a good stretch. Even his teammates had sometimes lost track of him, Mona included, so hopefully whatever they were stalking wouldn’t notice him either.

The scene around the corner was familiar. It was the same sort of dead end that Nakanohara and Takanashi had sequestered themselves in. And, indeed, a human shadow stood with its back to the wall at the very end — a middle-aged man in the uniform of a train conductor.

Cornering him, the way the Phantom Thieves had done to their own targets, was... something else.

A Shadow? Joker couldn’t tell, and Mona hadn’t been able to either. It was human-shaped, at least, though its head was covered by a bulky black helmet and its hands ended in wicked claws. It pointed what looked like a gun at the Shadow in front of it. A hold up? Just threats? Could it be... another human with the power of the Metaverse Nav and Persona?

‘It's too soon to tell,’ Ren chided himself.

The Shadow was already clearly agitated, though not to the point of transforming yet. “So what if I am?” it shot back in response to something Joker hadn't heard. “What's it to you?”

“Then that's all I need to know,” the black masked Persona user (?) replied, cold and sharp — but not distorted. There was none of the strange, twisted quality that permeated every Shadow’s speech. The stranger's voice was, if anything, quieter and younger than Joker had expected. And looking again at his back, beneath the thick black bindings, it was surprisingly narrow.

...That wasn't important now.

If this really was another Persona user, what should they do?

Mona’s paws tightened against his coat where he hung on Joker’s shoulder. The look he shot their leader held the same question. ‘What should we do, Joker?’

There was no guarantee that the stranger would be an ally just because they also had the Nav and a Persona, if that was even really the case. There was no guarantee he’d be willing to listen or cooperate. And if came down to a fight, how hard would another Persona be to face? Did they have a reason to risk it?

Joker’s expression remained impassive, but the faint narrowing of his lips gave away his uncertainty.

“If you got what you wanted, then get lost, kid!” the Shadow snapped belligerently. “You heard are all the same, always causing trouble for those of us who actually work—”

“That’s all I need to know, Harada Ryusuke,” the black masked stranger cut across the Shadow’s burgeoning tirade. Ominous power swirl around and behind him, and Joker realized they were out of time to act. “But there's something else I need from you... Arise, Loki! Break the chains on his heart!”

The black helmet burned away, and something black and white and red appeared behind the strange boy — his Persona, but just looking at it made Joker’s eyes unfocus and his head pound. It gestured, and its choking power engulfed the train conductor’s Shadow, ripping a long, torturous scream from the man’s throat.

“Joker—!” Mona hissed in shock, but his voice was lost in the confusion.

The guise of humanity tore away from the Shadow, leaving behind a towering horse-like form that Joker didn’t recognize from any of their Metaverse experiences until then. It howled, bending backwards impossibly far, and the miasma around it surged.

Joker had moved forward instinctively, even though he had no idea what he would do or whose side he would take. He had no idea what was happening at all. He got as far as the turning the corner, dagger in hand—

When the unknown Persona user collided with him bodily, having turned and made a break for it immediately after activating his spell — ability?

They went down in a graceless heap of limbs, coat tails, and screeching cat.

The bulky mask was back in place, but Joker caught a glimpse of wide, shocked eyes, before the other boy — only Ren’s age, he thought distantly — kneed him in the kidneys and shoved him off with surprising force. He scrambled to his feet and ran, just barely avoiding the others, who had come running at the disturbance.

An Agi fireball slammed into the place the two of them had fallen, just barely missing the side of Joker’s coat. He shoved down his shock and confusion, and rolled gracefully into a ready crouch.

Red and raging, the Equine Sage let out another shriek and sent a wave of fire toward all of them. Skull managed to drag Fox back around the corner, while Panther hastily summoned Carmen to defend herself and Joker, but the Shadow barely paused to gather itself before readying another spell.

“What do we do?!” Panther yelled, panicked.

“Joker, we shouldn’t fight!” Mona cut in before he could answer. His claws were still clinging desperately to the shoulder of Joker’s coat. “It’s a person’s Shadow! If we kill it, he’ll die in real life too!”

And with the way it was rampaging, they very easily could go too far.

Coming to a decision, Joker nodded sharply. “Fall back!” he ordered, over the Shadow’s raging howls. Knowing it wouldn’t have let them go that easily, he threw a Vanish Ball on the ground to cover their escape. In the ensuing cloud of smoke, the Phantom Thieves nobly... ran away.

~.~.~

Despite the strange encounter that left them baffled and uneasy, The Phantoms had larger, more immediate concerns — namely, their ongoing target Madarame. With their training complete, the calling card was prepared and made public. After that, there was no time to hesitate, and they plunged back into his Palace, defeating his Shadow and claiming his Treasure... the original Sayuri.

As with Kamoshida, it would probably be some time before the change of heart went through, but even just the appearance of the calling card had the news buzzing for days afterwards.

However, Ren barely noticed the TV spots and gossip in the streets, too focused on the mystery that had escaped them in Mementos. They still had no idea what to make of another human having access to Metaverse and the power of Persona. An ally? An enemy? Or neither at all? If nothing else, the mysterious “Black Mask” presented a threat, as someone who could understand and even interfere with their methods.

But more importantly, what had he done and why? Even Morgana hadn’t been sure — Why had that man’s Shadow gone berserk like that? What was the purpose of it?

“—And now on to our next story,” the newscaster on the TV droned on.

“Finally,” Sojiro muttered under his breath. “Don’t they get tired of going on about those prank cards?”

Pulled out his thoughts where he’d dropped at the empty bar, Ren couldn’t help smiling a little at his temporary guardian’s disinterest in their activities. He turned to look at the TV — and paused, staring.

A man’s picture was being displayed in the right corner. He wasn’t anyone remarkable, but his face and more importantly his uniform sparked a sense of familiarity in Ren.

“Investigation continues of the mysterious case of the train conductor who caused a major incident last week,” the newscaster was saying. “The man in question claims to have no memory of his actions, but police suspect drug abuse. The Minister of Transportation and Tourism has come under heavy fire...”

Ren didn’t hear the rest. It had finally clicked.

That was the man whose Shadow they had seen in Mementos, just before sending Madarame’s calling card. The one that had been driven into a berserk rampage by the unknown Persona user.

“That’s the guy!” Morgana hissed, having come to the same realization. “And look at the date, that's when we were in Mementos back then. So making his Shadow go berserk made this guy go on a rampage in real life too!”

Silently, Ren nodded.

But despite their discovery, there was one thing they and the rest of the team were unable to figure out — why?

~.~.~ 


	2. June

**2\. June**

Tokyo was a large city, and with that came an abundance of strange rumors and incidents. It was impossible to tell which were even real, much less which ones might have been caused through supernatural — Metaverse — means. All the same, The Phantoms made a concentrated effort to keep an eye on the news and also on Mementos, during their periodic trips there for the Phansite requests.

They never did run into Black Mask again, but privately Ren wondered if perhaps that wasn't for the best. They still didn't even know what approach to take if they did.

(Ryuji was raring for a fight, declaring the Black Mask their rival and too suspicious. Ann cautiously wanted to invite him to join forces. Yusuke was neutral. Morgana didn’t say anything one way or another in their meetings, but privately expressed a certain unease that he couldn't quite put into words.)

(Ren didn't know what he thought, so he just kept silent.)

(There were just too many things to consider, too many possibilities. But his first, hidden instinct... was a pang of something like concern. Irrationally and pointlessly, he wondered — how hard was it to navigate Mementos alone? How overwhelming must it be to gain this kind of power alone?)

However, the matter was soon pushed to the bottom of their priority list as Makoto Niijima entered their lives — forcefully, by way of blackmail and a two week time limit.

To begin with, a mafia boss was a huge and dangerous step up from a gym teacher and an elderly artist. No matter how much they flouted the rules and abused their superior position in society, they were still bound by the need to at least keep up appearances of lawfulness. Kamoshida hadn’t been able to expel them on the spot, needing to raise it with the board for even just a puppet vote, and Madarame had sought to avoid a scandal during his show. And neither of them had the inclination to do much beyond at most the kind of beating that came from a tough fight in the Metaverse.

But a mafia boss? Well, he (probably a “he”) wouldn’t necessarily have more protection in the Metaverse, but what if their palace required changing their real world cognition, like Madarame’s?

And that required finding this boss and he name first, a task that The Phantoms had so far made no progress in.

They were on their second day of checking thus far empty leads across Shibuya, and it was going perhaps slower than it should have due to Ren’s insistence that everyone at least pair up instead of going on their own.

He had started out paired with Yusuke, but finding Makoto wandering around alone, he had insisted that the artist go with her instead. He had Morgana, after all. Judging by the look she shot him, Makoto thought their goal was to keep tabs on her, but that was fine.

“We’re supposed to be checking the back alley near the arcade, right?” Morgana chimed in, a bright blue eye peeking out from the open top of Ren’s bag. “That’s down this way on Central Street, I think. Keep your eyes peeled for anyone suspicious.”

Ren nodded, his gaze already sweeping the street corners and shadowed side alleys, even as he kept his head down.

They were still a few buildings away from the arcade’s flashy storefront when something in the shadows of an alley caught his eye. Movement — a boy in the pale short-sleeved shirt of a school uniform and another, taller figure just short of looming.

A student and a suspicious, shady man... part of the racket they were looking for?

...Ren would have liked to be able to claim his thoughts were that logical and focused, but in truth he changed direction without thinking at all. It was the same impulse that had gotten him arrested in the first place, only strengthened by the spirit of rebellion that manifested Arsene. ‘I wasn’t wrong,’ Ren had thought down in Kamoshida’s dungeon. So he would continue to act on his justice.

As if sensing the detour, Morgana sighed but kept silent.

“—hanging around here,” the shady man was saying, his tone aggressive and just short of threatening. “You up to something, kid?”

“I don't know what you're talking about. This is a public area, anyone can come and go,” the boy in front of him replied. Despite the seemingly deferential way his head was lowered and the defensive, rounded slope of his shoulders, his voice held no quiver or uncertainty. If anything, it was mild in a way that suggested he was hiding a great deal of annoyance.

With a low growl, the thug reached out to grab him by the arm. “Don't fuck with me, you—”

And that was when Ren stepped in.

Clapping his hand on the boy’s shoulder — no year pin on the summer uniform, but a little shorter than him; a first year? — he pulled him back and subtly put himself between the two. “Hey, I've been looking everywhere for you,” Ren said with a friendly, overly familiar smile. “Sorry about the wait. Are you ready to go?”

He had been ready to sell it on his own, or even block any awkward, uncomprehending questions, given the general acting ability of his team, but the boy only blinked once, looking at Ren for a bare moment longer than natural, and smiled just as cheerfully.

“It's no problem. I'm ready if you are,” he said, playing along smoothly.

Ren hustled them back toward the main street quickly, trying to give the thug no chance to protest. Over his shoulder, he shot the suspicious man a look — carefully questioning and open, not the threatening glare he wanted.

With a last, nasty scowl, the thug turned away and let them depart unobstructed.

They walked silently for about a block before the younger boy glanced at Ren. “...Thank you,” he said. “I appreciate your assistance back there. I'm not quite certain what that man wanted from me.” He laughed a little, trying to ease the tension.

“It’s pretty dangerous in Shibuya nowadays, especially for students alone,” Ren said. “Did he offer you a job? Or... do you already have one with them?”

Even before the other boy answered, Ren could tell that wasn’t the case. The look on his face was genuine puzzlement at the question. “A job?” he echoed.

A lead would have been too much to hope for. Ah well, it didn’t really matter. “Nevermind,” Ren said quickly. “Come on, I’ll walk you to the train station.”

“That’s, that’s not necessary!” the boy protested quickly. “There’s no need for you to go that far.”

Manly pride? Ren smiled without thinking. They couldn’t have been more than a year apart, but the other boy’s slightly long, soft light hair and still round face gave him a younger appearance. He would probably become the handsome type in a few years, but for now Ren could see why some unscrupulous thugs might target him in particular.

“I insist,” he said. Without waiting for a response, he turned and began to head back toward the station — with his hand still on the other boy’s shoulder, pulling him along gently but firmly.

There was an aggravated huff behind him, but a moment later, the boy fell in step next to him, and Ren let his hand drop away.

They walked to the station in silence, even Morgana only wiggling impatiently against his side a few times. Ren’s phone buzzed in his pocket, but he ignored it for now. It wasn’t a long walk, and soon they were coming to a stop just outside the entrance. The boy smiled blandly and said, “Thank you again for your help. I’ll be fine from here.”

Ren nodded. It wasn’t as if he’d planned to follow him on the train. However, “It’s probably better if you don’t come back to this area for a while. For a couple weeks, at least.”

Two weeks was all the time Makoto had given them, so either they would resolve the mob issue or— Or Ren would have no freedom to worry about others.

“It’s fine, my business here is finished,” the boy said — which was a strange way to put it, Ren thought, his eyes narrowing slightly. But the faint stirring of suspicion, based on nothing but a gut feeling, was pushed away when the boy smiled again, with a touch of genuine warmth this time. “Thank you,” he repeated, looking away and rubbing lightly at his cheek. “Not many people would go out of their way like this. It’s... good to see.”

Ren smiled too, a little wider than he’d intended. He had done it because his justice required it, but even so, it was nice to be thanked and appreciated. In his bag, Morgana sighed again.

“Right,” Ren cleared his throat. It was a little embarrassing to feel how much his cheeks had stretched. Was he that happy about being praised? “Well, take care.”

Raising a hand in farewell, he made his exit speedily.

Very smooth, definitely worthy of a phantom thief. He could practically feel Morgana rolling his eyes. To escape the mortification, Ren quickly busied himself with his phone. He’d missed a number of new messages in the group chat, as he’d expected. Ryuji and Ann’s lead had led to nothing in particular, again, but...

Yusuke and Makoto had found something. An over-friendly guy had tried to offer them a job, though he fled quickly once Makoto started grilling him about his boss.

It was a start.

~.~.~

**2.5 End of June**

Junya Kaneshiro, their next target, had extended their deadline to three weeks when adding his own blackmail timeline on them, but Ren pushed to finish his Palace as quickly as possible.

Nothing good could come of being on a mafia boss’s radar, so it was best to end the situation without delays — before Kaneshiro decided to follow up or mess with them somehow. Subdued after their close brush with danger and righteously indignant, no one protested as they returned to Shibuya and the flying bank every day possible.

It wasn’t even one week later, that they secured the infiltration route and sent out the calling card — all across Shibuya.

And only a day after that, Shadow Kaneshiro was defeated at their feet, his guard robot nothing more than disintegrating scrap. Were they getting stronger that quickly, or was he weaker than the other two Palace rulers?

“I just wanted a place where I could belong! You get that, don’t you!?” Kaneshiro’s Shadow groveled.

“Bullshit!” Ann shot back what they were all thinking. “All you did was surround yourself with people you could use, just for some easy money!”

“You’ll have the perfect place to belong now,” Makoto added grimly, “a nice little cell, once we change your heart and you confess. So hurry up and return to the real Kaneshiro.”

The snivelling pity play disappeared as if it had never existed, and Shadow Kaneshiro glowered at them belligerently. “Seriously? You guys can quit it with the selfless noble act! You’re just using those powers of yours to save your own hides from your debt! You’re just the same as those guys draining me dry!”

“We’re not like you!” Skull protested heatedly, without hesitation.

But if Shadow Kaneshiro was saying that, it meant he almost certainly recognized them from their real world meeting with Kaneshiro. It would be fine, Joker reminded himself. Kamoshida had known who they were, Madarame too, and nothing had come of it. Just as Mona had said, the knowledge of the Shadow did not carry over to the real person, at least not directly.

Queen’s expression had hardened as well, but her concern was different. “Just like those guys? Like who?” she demanded, taking a threatening step toward Kaneshiro.

He sneered a her. “As if they’d be stupid enough to tell me anything about themselves,” he said. “But they’ve got their feelers in everything. The crime rings, businesses, the government — they’re aiming to take the whole country under their control. And now they’re offering a new service, for those loyal to them and willing to pay. That’s why that kid was here, to show me it’s real...”

That was... a lot to take in, and everyone could only gape at him in stunned silence.

“A conspiracy spanning every level of society? And they were... using you for money?” Queen summarized, the quickest to react. “And you’re saying they have access to the Metaverse?”

The group collectively swung around toward her, like the shocked spectators of a tennis match — or the twist episode of a TV drama.

Someone who could access the Metaverse, a “kid” as Kaneshiro put it. “...That black masked Persona user from before,” Joker made the connection. From the way Shadow Kaneshiro’s eyes flickered to him, that description was familiar to him.

They hadn’t filled Queen in about that yet, Joker realized, as she glanced at him quickly but kept her silence. “Oh, I see! Then that guy must have come here to Kaneshiro’s Palace to change his cognition into accepting the possibility of manipulating hearts,” Mona said. “The real person doesn’t remember what the Shadow sees, but you can still leave an impression that affects the real world, like a feeling you can’t place.”

“So he offered to drive your enemies into rampages?” Joker said to Shadow Kaneshiro.

“For now,” he scoffed. “Just until they figure out you can kill in this world, I bet.”

Mona bristled, and everyone else tensed instinctively. Seeing their reactions, Kaneshiro laughed mockingly.

“Oh, you’re all so green! Look at you, freaking out at just the thought of killing!” he jeered. “Heh, cheer up. Maybe that kid is as green as you. But it’ll be rough on him if he tries to refuse. Those guys won’t take no for an answer.” His form was beginning to glow and faded away now, his last words barely reaching them. “And you too, better be careful... You’ll be crushed if you get in their way...”

~.~.~

The atmosphere in the group had been uneasy when they parted back in the real world. No one doubted that Kaneshiro’s change of heart would go through and his blackmail against them forgotten, but the things he had mentioned...

Even Makoto seemed shaken, though she swore to scour the news for any pattern among recent incidents, once she had been filled in about the train conductor’s rampage.

Ren dropped his head onto the lumpy pillow with a heavy sigh. At least the exhaustion from battle would... knock him out... quickly... eno...ugh...

When his eyes snapped open, it was to the eerie blue light of the so-called Velvet Room — a misleading name for a dungeon. The twin child wardens were at his cell door as always, he saw as he sat up, and the master of the prison was at his test, eyes bulging and grin wide. But somehow, he looked even more pleased than usual.

“You’ve overcome another distorted foe. Well done, I am glad to see you have devoted yourself to your rehabilitation,” Igor said, his deep voice rumbling through the stone chamber. The remark was perfunctory, however. It was the next part, delivered casually, that mattered. “And it seems you have encountered one with the power to oppose you.”

“The other Metaverse user?” Ren said.

He didn’t flinch as Caroline struck the bars and barked a warning, his attention fixed on Igor. He was certain he had seen it — the minute widening of his smile.

“Indeed, I speak of another with powers similar to yours. If you are to complete your rehabilitation, you may encounter him eventually,” Igor confirmed. He chuckled. “Yet another thing for me to look forward to...”

Ren kept his expression blank, even as the blue glow and black shadows of the Velvet prison swam before his eyes, signalling his impending awakening. But his heart was pounding, his thoughts painfully sharp. That amusement... No matter how vaguely Igor phrased it, his admission felt like something locking into place.

He couldn’t be trusted. ‘I bestowed the Metaverse Navigator to you as a means to train you as a thief,’ he had said, back when it all began in April. Ruin, rehabilitation, those were all just words to hide his true motives.

Why did Igor want Ren to be ‘trained as a thief?’ And to what end had he granted the Metaverse Nav to that other Persona user? What was he being ‘trained’ as, to cause rampages on the orders of corrupt adults?

They were all being played. All of them — Ren, his teammates, even Black Mask.

They had to find a way out, before the game reached its end...

That was his last clear thought before he was pulled under.

~.~.~ 


	3. July

**3\. July**

Makoto had proven by far more adept than any of them at sorting the many strange incidents of Tokyo, and before long she had something of a pattern established. Two patterns, in fact — transportation incidents, like the train derailing, and... food industry incidents, which had started somewhat more recently but were even more common, hitting many major restaurant chains including Wilduck Burger and Haneruya.

The common link among all of them, she pointed out, was each perpetrator’s lack of memory regarding the event.

“If there’s two kinds of incidents like this, that means there’s two different people ordering the rampages, right?” Morgana surmised. “Kaneshiro said they were treating the Metaverse like a service.” He bristled, his disgust all too clear.

“Yes, there must be at least two ‘clients,’ but there might be even more, who have just requested too few incidents to create a pattern,” Makoto said. She sighed, running a hand over the back of her neck and through the short hair there. They had moved to the roof to discuss her findings, and even minutes after leaving the air conditioned student council room, the sweat was beginning to gather all over her body.

“Can you find out who these clients are?” Ren asked.

The look Makoto shot him was wryly and faintly amused. “You have too much confidence in me, I’m afraid,” she said. “If it was that simple, my sister would have resolved this case already. If the identity of those requesting the rampages become clear, it’ll be only after they no longer have a need to make the requests — because they will have gained whatever benefit they aimed for. But even then, we might not be able to tell.”

“I understand. It’s amazing you’ve gotten this far,” Ren reassured her quickly.

Makoto smiled. “I’ll keep an eye out all the same,” she said, before her expression turned serious once more. “It’s the only lead we have on this conspiracy. We can’t allow people like that to have free reign, not in the real world and certainly not in the Metaverse.”

“If we could just catch this guy in the Metaverse, it’d be easy,” Morgana muttered, his tail swishing angrily. “Six on one, we’d take him no problem.”

Compared to some great, shapeless conspiracy with its claws in every layer of society, a single Persona user was a far simpler, clearer target. That was true, but there was a problem. Namely, “if” they could catch Black Mask in the Metaverse.

Morgana hadn’t been able to sense him until they were in close proximity, and there were now numerous areas of Mementos open to them. The chances of being able to catch him there without some way of knowing when or where he would be appearing ahead of time were slim, to put it mildly.

“We’ll keep an eye out,” Ren compromised.

“Do you want to tell the others?” Makoto asked.

Ren shrugged. “When there’s something to tell,” he said. Knowing there were specific patterns to the rampage targets wouldn’t do Ryuji, Ann or Yusuke any good, after all.

It wasn’t doing him any good, as he finally headed back to Leblanc only to be reminded again about the partial shutdowns and delays caused by the continued subway incidents. All he could think about, as he made the transfer to Ginza, was how terrifying it must have been for those people — to just black out suddenly and wake up a criminal and a pariah, through no fault of their own.

Using the Metaverse like this... it was wrong.

It wasn’t even out of anger or a grudge. Black Mask was doing this on the orders of others. Was he being paid? Or, alternatively, threatened into cooperating?

But how would you even threaten a Metaverse user? When Kaneshiro tried, they had simply gone and changed his heart, and Black Mask was always coming and going from the Metaverse, where he couldn’t be monitored...

Wait.

Ren stopped in the middle of the station’s corridor, abruptly enough that the man behind him had to shoulder past. Occupied with the sudden thought that occurred to him, Ren barely noticed, despite Morgana’s grumbled protests as his bag swayed rockily.

“He doesn’t know how to change hearts,” Ren said to himself and to Morgana, with certainty.

“Black Mask?” Morgana guessed. “Oh... you’re right. He wouldn’t, would he? I was the one who told you guys how to do it, and it’s not something you’d stumble on yourself.”

It certainly wasn’t. Even if you noticed the formless Treasure inside a Palace — not guaranteed — its nature and how to materialize it was not in any way intuitive. Even for them, with Morgana’s guidance, the process still didn’t always make sense, in particular in regard to how Mementos targets reacted.

And without the ability to change hearts, would they have been able to escape Kaneshiro’s blackmail? Making Kamoshida and Madarame go berserk might have discredited them enough, but Kaneshiro? He would have simply regained himself and...

He would have known, if he had been part of this great conspiracy. He would have known who had tried to act against him, and he would have retaliated.

...There was one other option, wasn’t there? What Morgana had warned them about, when they went after Kamoshida — damaging his mind enough that he would fall into a coma or even die. They had accepted the risk, though thinking of it still left a cold stone in Ren’s gut. Did Black Mask know it was possible to kill through the Metaverse? Was he not yet willing to go that far? The rampage incidents hadn’t caused deaths yet, after all.

Ren shook his head. No, he was making too many assumptions. Maybe the other Persona-user really was just doing it for money, or for some other simple, selfish reason.

'I need to talk to him,’ Ren thought. ‘I need to meet him.’

If only it was as simple as running into him in the street. Almost wistfully, Ren let his gaze sweep across the station passageway and the faces of the passersby, as if expecting to see that heavy black visor.

And stopped.

There, by the bakery, was a figure he did recognize, if not the one he had been looking for. It was the boy from Shibuya — Ren would know that light, fluffy hair anywhere. He has peering at something in the display case of Yon-Germain Bakery, an expression of almost comical intensity on his face. As a student with limited income often tempted by Tokyo’s many carnal vices, Ren could relate. To splurge or not to splurge often felt like a life or death question.

It took a moment of the boy to notice him, when Ren stopped next to his shoulder and waited.

“Oh!” he stared in surprise before smiling. “It’s you. I didn’t think I’d see you again. I suppose it is a good thing I decided to walk around a bit in my spare time. What a pleasant surprise...”

What a weirdly mature way of talking. “You remember me,” Ren noted happily.

“Of course! As I said back then, selfless kindness is rare. I wouldn’t forget it so easily,” the boy assured him. He studied Ren for a moment, a smile lingering on his lips. “My name is Goro Akechi. Maybe it’s fate that we meet like this. This time I can repay you — pick anything you like.”

He gestured to the bakery displays.

“I’m Ren Amamiya. It’s nice to meet you... Is it really alright? Tokyo is expensive,” Ren said, even as he stepped closer to take a look at the different cake slices and tarts. Even if deserts were more Ann’s thing, he could admit his mouth watered a little.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Akechi — Goro-kun? No, that was too forward — puff up a little, though there was a strange quality to his smile now. “As it happens, my financial situation has greatly improved in the last while,” he said. “Being able to spend freely feels satisfying, I admit.”

Even so, Ren felt he should decline. He hadn’t been aiming to be rewarded, and it had been such a small thing. But...

He wanted to accept that gratitude, in the complete opposite of “selflessness.” It wouldn’t be polite to keep declining, right? Just this once, it would be alright to be selfish.

“Then I’ll have a slice of the Mocha Espresso Cake,” Ren said, pointing to the display piece.

“And a Moist Katsu Bun! Go all in!” Morgana hissed lowly, making the book bag sway with his wiggling. Ren elbowed him firmly. They had manners, after all. It wasn’t like Sojiro was letting them starve.

Akechi shot Ren a surprised look, then shook his head and chuckled, stepping up to the counter. Ren waited patiently while he spoke to the clerk, the exchange surprisingly prolonged for a simple order. Finally, Akechi stepped back, two paper bags in hand. Holding out one to Ren, he smiled sheepishly.

“My apologies, I said I would treat you to anything you wanted, but it seems that’s a rainy day special,” he said. “I hope a Melon Pan will be sufficient compensation.”

“It’s fine,” Ren assured him automatically, reaching out to accept it. “Melon Pan is great.”

But wasn’t it a little odd? The Mocha Cake was right there on display.

“Thank you again, Amamiya-san. I wish you all the best,” Akechi said and, raising his hand in farewell, headed off.

Poking his head out, Morgana stared after him with the cat’s version of a frown. “There’s something about him...” he said. “I dunno, but it bothers me.” Ren hummed concomitantly, shifting the paper bag in his grip to hold it in one arm and open it with the other hand. He peered inside, his browns furrowing.

There were two pieces of baked goods inside. A Melon Pan... and a Mocha Cake.

“Oh,” Ren said softly. “Oh...”

That meeting really had been some kind of fate, hadn’t it?

~.~.~ 


	4. August

**4\. August**

The previously distant, vague threat of the conspiracy came into sharp focus when they learned the full story of Sojiro’s adopted daughter Futaba and her mother — her mother, who hadn’t actually committed suicide but had been assassinated for her cognitive psience research, almost certainly by the very people now using the Metaverse for their dirty work. Ren had wondered how such a group could so easily buy into the existence of a supernatural other world, but if they had been pursuing it all along...

He was worried, in what seemed to be his constant, ever heightening state since gaining his Persona — or maybe it was just because he finally had something to lose. He was worried about his friends, about Futaba who had passed out after they defeated her twisted Cognition of Wakaba Isshiki, and even about Goro Akechi, the Persona user working for the conspiracy.

Ren still didn’t know why Akechi was taking orders from that shadowy group or how he had come into contact with them. In fact, he still knew very little about Akechi, despite his best efforts.

They had run into each other at Ginza several more times, thanks to Ren’s deliberate new habit of loitering there until the last possible moment before and after school — although Akechi seemed to take a suspiciously consistent route through the station and had around the bakery awfully often without buying anything. But those meetings were always in passing, and a crowded train station was no place to ask, “Is there a special app on your phone that takes you to another world? And are you using it to make people go out of control?”

He did know now that Akechi lived alone and had no family, and he could guess that the only reason he could afford to do so was the “new job” Akechi had mentioned in passing. (Was it really just about the money? And what had Akechi meant when he said there were “few places willing to employ someone like him?”)

He also knew Akechi liked sushi but still felt guilty for indulging in it, despite being able to afford it now. He liked Featherman and Risette’s single from last year, Regret. He had top grades, but no particular favorite subject or passion for studying. He skipped meals entirely too often for Ren’s liking.

This was all interesting, of course, and Ren collected each fact with great attention. None of it, however, helped their team or did much to advance their relationship.

But that was about to change.

“It's great and all, but you don't need to smirk that much,” Morgana muttered, shooting Ren a particularly disgruntled look. “Are you even taking this seriously?”

“I am,” Ren confirmed absently. And he was. “How many days should I wait before calling him?”

Because they had finally, finally exchanged contact information. Using the opening of the train routes finally returning to normal — the Minister of Transportation had resigned after the repeated scandals, Makoto watching the political situation like a half — and how they would be unlikely to meet by chance again, Ren had managed to secure Akechi’s phone number and chat ID and a promise to hang out sometime. The ease it had gone with almost made him feel guilty, remembering Akechi’s genuinely pleased expression at deepening their friendship.

And it was a friendship, no matter Ren’s ulterior motives. He would apologize as much as necessary later, for his deception, and in the end, it was for Akechi’s sake too, before the adults using him could turn on him, if they hadn't already.

Morgana was right, Ren was grinning widely as he stared down at the new entry in his phone — Joker was grinning, with the look he gave Shadows during hold up.

“Without looking too thirsty, you mean?” Morgana grumbled. “That's impossible. You already passed that a long while back.”

“You're right, I'll just call him right now.”

“What?!”

Springing up from where he'd curled up on Ren’s bed once they were home, Morgana yowled furiously, but Ren ignored him. Already tapping the contact and the call button, he waved at the not-cat to keep it down.

It picked up on the second ring. “Amamiya-san?” came from the other end of the line. “I didn’t expect to hear from you so quickly. But I’m glad.”

“I didn’t want to lose my chance,” Ren said lightly, although his heart was pounding harder than he had expected or could explain. “Are you free on Sunday?...”

~.~.~

Since Ren had acted on pure impulse, without even deciding on a destination, they had agreed to meet at Ginza as usual and take the train together from there.

He considered the fancy sushi place they had gone to celebrate Kaneshiro’s change of heart, right there in Ginza, or Dome Town in Suidobashi, or even the planetarium in Ikebukuro, but each one was shot down by Morgana’s increasingly unimpressed commentary — yet another reason Ren had left him at home. In the end, Ren settled for the monjayaki place in Tsukishima that he and Ryuji had gone to together.

“Were you at school today?” Ren asked, once they had settled at their table, the frying batter on the grill between them.

Akechi, who had been in the middle of taking a snapshot of the food, glanced at him in surprise. “No, why do you... Oh,” he realized, glancing down at the summer uniform he was wearing like usual. “Um, no. That’s not it. It’s just...”

He cleared his throat, and Ren was sure he saw a light flush on his cheeks that had nothing to do with the heat of the grill. Looking away, he fiddled mindlessly with his phone.

“I wasn’t sure what to wear,” Akechi admitted, his lips twisting unhappily. “I haven’t been invited out casually... for a long time. To my business engagements or appointments, I always wear my school uniform. It’s neutral, flexible, and projects a good image of contributing of society. So...”

So he’d worn it to meet Ren too, just to be on the safe side. “That makes sense,” Ren agreed, nodding.

He was a fan of neutral clothing as well, and he had made an effort to appear more ‘mature’ and ‘responsible’ after his conviction, resulting in a wardrobe that veered perhaps a touch too far toward business major college student, especially next to Ryuji and Ann. Anything, to take an edge off the way everyone had started treating him.

“But maybe at least lose the tie,” he suggested. And, by his own advice, slipped off his glasses, leaving them on the table beside him.

Chuckling, Akechi pulled his striped necktie loose and stuffed it, rolled up, into his book bag. He tugged the top button open and gave an exaggerated sigh of relief. “Much better,” he admitted. Smiling, they both dug into the now ready monjayaki.

This was...

Not very useful.

It was nice, but it wasn’t doing anything for his actual purpose — confirming Akechi’s identity as Black Mask and finding out about his situation, in particular his connection to the conspiracy.

Although he would have been loathe to admit it to Morgana, Ren never did manage to come up with any real plan for how to accomplish these goals. But at the very least, the first step would be turning the conversation in the direction. There were a few different options, and, chewing slowly, Ren made up his mind.

“What do you think about Medjed’s threat?” he asked. “Do you think the Phantom Thieves can win?”

On their own, they stood no chance, Ren knew better than anyone. Their only hope was Futaba, that she would awaken the defeat Medjed on whatever battlefield hackers used.

On the other hand, the situation was so sure that there was literally nothing they could do, and that was freeing in its own way.

“I think Medjed might be bluffing,” Akechi said — unexpectedly. “Finding the identities of the Phantom Thieves would require a very different skill set than breaking into a computer system, no matter how advanced. However, I am uncertain what they hope to accomplish by causing so much fuss. Perhaps they just wanted the attention.”

Ren paused. He hadn't considered that.

“But if Medjed are serious, they would be a difficult target for the Phantom Thieves,” Akechi went on. “These two groups are very mismatched in their methods.” His eyes narrowed, and the corner of his lips twisted in scorn. “The whole thing is a farce.”

When he wasn't trying to present an overly mature facade, Akechi was surprisingly sharp-tongued and jaded. He didn’t seem to realize he’d slipped up, focused with single-minded attention on his spatulas and analyzing the monjayaki.

As if finally returning to the conversation mentally, he blinked and glanced up at Ren. “I suppose you might not agree, since you’re such a fan of the Phantom Thieves,” he added, smiling pleasantly again. “I’m sure you’re rooting for them.”

A fan? “What gave me away?” Ren asked, smirking a little.

“You bring them up quite often,” Akechi said rather blandly. “Almost every time we meet, in fact.”

...He might have done that, yes. And yet despite all that fishing, still wasn’t sure what Akechi actually thought of the Phantom Thieves. It wasn’t because he hadn’t asked, but every time, Akechi had shrugged off the question or deflected with some general observation about the public’s opinion instead.

“Why do you think so? That the Phantom Thieves would have a hard time with Medjed,” he asked instead, returning to earlier in the conversation.

“No one knows Medjed’s names,” Akechi said simply, as if that explained everything. And it did — but only within the context of the Metaverse. There was no reason for an ordinary student to think a name was necessary.

Akechi seemed to realize this as well, his expression shuttering quickly, but Ren spoke up before he could. “Maybe it doesn’t matter to the Phantom Thieves,” he said. “Who knows how they change hearts.”

“Hahaha, that’s true,” Akechi chuckled awkwardly. “You’re supposed to put a full name on their website, so I had assumed it must have something to do with their methods. But maybe it’s just for show.”

“They must have some special power,” Ren mused. “What would you do, if you could change... how people think and act like that?”

Was that too obvious? Would Akechi suspect something? But the boy in front of him only glanced away, frowning faintly. “I suppose for me as well... there would be someone I want to bring to justice,” he said finally.

That was an answer Ren had ever considered, and it made him stall, staring in surprise — too long. As if realizing he had revealed more than he intended, Akechi quickly and forcefully changed the topic. “This is really good,” he said, in a tone that couldn’t even begin to approach casual, with a smile that was equally forced. “I’m glad you introduced it to me!”

“...Right,” Ren murmured.

There was no way he could keep pressing after that.

~.~.~

“So basically, you chickened out and didn’t find out anything useful,” Morgana summarized that evening, once Ren had slunk back to Leblanc. “In other words, it was a waste of time.”

Ren didn’t agree. It had been a fun day out, and he knew their bond had gotten stronger for it. But there was no arguing with Morgana when he got into a lecturing mood.

“Beating around the bush like this isn’t getting us anywhere,” he went on. “We’re sure it’s him, aren’t we? It all matches up. So why don’t we just have everyone ambush him in the real world and drag him to Mementos with us? It’ll be six on one, we’ll get answers out of him even if he doesn’t like it.”

“That’s drastic,” Ren deflected.

“Don’t you think the situation is drastic?” Morgana shot back. “How do you think those people he’s making rampage feel? It’s not right. And how long before someone gets seriously hurt? It’s been pure luck so far that everyone got off lightly. Not to mention that conspiracy — we need to know more.”

Of course, Morgana was right. It wasn’t like Ren hadn’t considered that. They needed to stop the rampages as soon as they could, and they desperately needed to find out what they were really up against. He knew that.

But.

He tried to imagine how he would feel if Akechi — if one of his friends — suddenly turned around and dragged him to Mementos, weapons ready. Outnumbered, betrayed... Just thinking of that scenario made his heart rate pick up and cold sweat break out on his back. He wouldn’t listen, Ren felt almost certain, not to a word he heard. He’d just... run, fight, anything to get away.

Reading his hesitation, Morgana sighed. “If we’re wrong, we’ll know right away because his outfit will be wrong or he won’t have one at all. I’ll help you apologize,” he tried to compromise. “It’ll be okay.”

Even so, Ren remained silent, desperately trying to find a way out of the choice he didn’t want to make.

“Medjed,” he said finally. “We don’t know what’s going to happen with them, and the deadline is coming up. We should wait until Futaba wakes up, at least.”

Morgana’s stare was judging again. But in the end, he conceded, “Fine. But only until Futaba wakes up. Once she deals with Medjed, this will be our priority, above finding a new target. Okay, Joker?”

The code name was a reminder. Steeling himself, Ren nodded.

~.~.~


	5. September, first half

**5\. September, first half**

Despite Morgana’s solemn instructions and Ren’s own determination, the first priority after Futaba’s awakening and quick culling of the fake Medjed was getting her acclimated to human contact again and then to her Persona.

It was her Persona, Necronomicon, that created a third option that Joker seized gladly. For better or for worse.

“...Huh,” Oracle said, as they moved to a new floor of Mementos. There was a pause as she checked something. “Yeah, so. You know that guy you told me about? I think he’s here. Like, right now.”

Stunned silence, then — pandemonium.

“Seriously?!”

“Shit! Is he close?”

“Calm down, everyone. This is our chance!”

“Oracle, you can sense him?” Joker spoke up over the chaos of his teammates. His tone was even, but his insides were squirming just as much. “How close is he?”

“Well, I’m guessing that’s him, anyway,” Oracle said. “Doesn’t feel like a Shadow, so... He’s on the other side of this floor, moving slowly. Doesn’t seem like he knows we’re here...”

“Of course. He does not have a navigator of your caliber on his side,” Fox said, rather matter of factly, but Oracle cleared her throat in obvious pleased embarrassment.

“Joker...” Mona started, as everyone turned to their leader, excited and determined.

“I know,” he said. And he did. Queen was right, this was their chance. “We’re going to ambush him. Oracle, keep a lock on his position. I’ll sneak up on him, like last time. Everyone else, fan out and block the paths out. But...” He hesitated, caught in the same mental conflict as before, “Just give me a moment to talk to him first, one on one.”

“Is that a good idea?” Queen wondered, her eyes narrowing behind her visor. “We have no idea what he might do to you.”

“He’s more likely to talk one on one,” Joker said. “He’s not a Shadow. If we can solve this without fighting, we have to try.”

Mona’s look was particularly heavy on him, but in the end, no one protested further. Quietly and quickly, they moved according to Oracle’s instructions. She had been right, Black Mask was moving at a rather leisurely pace down the tunnels — to the stairs down, most likely. Catching up to him first, Joker began to tail him from a corner down, the shadows of Mementos hiding his presence completely.

“OK,” Oracle’s voice echoed in their minds. “There’s still some gaps, but we’ve got him as penned as we can. Joker, are you ready for the hold up?”

‘He’s not a Shadow,’ Joker thought, a little surly, and they weren’t taking him at gunpoint... he hoped. But he kept the thought to himself. This wasn’t the time.

There wasn’t a good way to do this, so he settled for the simplest. Stepping away from the wall, he let his footsteps echo down the passage.

His target froze, and for a moment, Joker thought he would run again. “Wait,” he called out. “I just want to talk.”

Something about his words, or maybe his tone, was enough to make Black Mask pause and then turn slowly to face him. Even as Joker slowly closed the distance between them, he couldn’t read anything of Black Mask’s thoughts in his hidden expression or tense posture. Keeping his hands in clear view, he stopped when he’d pushed as close as he dared.

“I’m Joker, the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts,” he introduced himself. There was no answer, but he hadn’t really expected one. Being alone, it was quite likely that ‘Black Mask’ had never come up with a code name for himself, and he was hardly going to give them his real one. “We were surprised to find out someone else could use the Metaverse... why don’t we exchange info?”

He knew, absolutely knew, that Mona was leveling a hard, unimpressed stare at the back of his head from where the monster cat had hidden. Queen’s lips were probably twisting unhappily, and Skull must have been glaring. They couldn’t have liked his approach, but all of them kept silent.

Finally, Black Mask responded — though still not with words. Tilting his head in not quite a nod, he made it clear he was listening, but only that.

“About how we got these powers, our methods... and our goals,” Joker went on, spreading his hands. “Do you want to know how we change hearts? And why?”

It was hard to keep from holding his breath as he waited. He could tell Black Mask was considering his words, his stance shifting uncertainly, his clawed hands flexing. But still, he said nothing. What did his hesitation mean? Akechi was quite confident in himself, in everything aside from emotional matters, and Joker couldn’t imagine him dithering like this. Especially since it must have been something he considered — knowing that other Metaverse users existed, there was a chance they would encounter each other again.

Was it because his situation was that precarious? The danger of accepting, rejecting, or anything in between left him paralyzed?

The only thing Joker could do was press on. “We, all of us, have been wronged by rotten adults abusing their power. There was nothing we could do and no one who would help us in the real world, so we used the Metaverse to bring them to justice,” he said, “by stealing their distorted desires and changing their hearts. And... we want to help others who have been betrayed by society like us.”

He was listening. That was the only thing Joker could tell. Was that a good sign?

Just a little more...

“Isn’t it the same for you?” he implored, taking one more, tentative step forward. “Why not work with us? We can change this unjust world.”

A reaction — a subtle waver, and a mirroring step. For a moment, Joker thought it would work, that he would take his hand and—

Shaking his head sharply, Black Mask backed away. “Wait!” Joker called out, following instinctively, but that only seemed to agitate him further. Black Mask raised his sword threateningly, and Joker tensed, expecting his Persona to appear in the next moment. But at least then his mask would burn away, and he’d be able to see—

“Looks like a boss fight after all!” Oracle exclaimed. “Everybody, move in!”

Everything descended into pandemonium, as several of the others crashed onto the scene, one after another. Some had the presence of mind to hang back and block the escape routes, but Mona bounded over to Joker’s side and Skull charged straight for Black Mask, pipe drawn back to strike.

Rather than trying to block or parry the blow, with Skull’s greater body mass behind it, their opponent sidestepped out of the way and retaliated by planting a kick in Skull’s ribs as his momentum carried him past. Panther tried to follow up with a fire spell, but Black Mask dodged most of it as well, raising his sword to ward off the flames that licked at him.

Blue flames flashed around them, as the others closed and summoned their Personas as well. They knew how to run an ambush, and despite the spells and attack flying, they weren’t in danger of hitting each other.

But they weren’t hitting their target either, at least not enough to slow him down. Somehow, without even summoning his Persona, Black Mask was managing to stay half a step ahead of their entire group.

Even so, it had to be difficult, and there were hits he was only barely blocking. To avoid summoning his Persona in this situation — the only reason would be to hide his face from them. It made Joker hesitate to summon, even as he mentally flipped through his Personas for one that could cast status effects. It was possible Akechi still hadn’t recognized him. But without his mask...

No. He needed to act.

“Persona!” Joker called out, even as he raised a hand to shield his eyes.

Sandman, the Persona he had chosen burst into existence behind him and quickly threw out a Dormina. It would have been ideal if it had been enough to knock their opponent out without further combat — without running the risk of seriously injuring him, or being injured themselves.

Black Mask staggered.

“Alright! This is it!” Skull roared. “Go for it!!”

Fox and Panther followed him as he charged in, ready to go all out on their weakened opponent. Only Queen hung back, with the presence of mind to cover the escape route behind her. ...And Mona, still hovering at Joker’s side.

“Wait! Guys, I this he might be just—” Oracle tried to warn them, sensing that something wasn’t right.

—Faking it. He had only been faking it, and once they were close enough, Black Mask burst back into action, no sign of the spell’s effects in his quick, sharp movements.

Tripping Skull, he tossed him at Fox, and they went down in a flailing ball of dust. With a squawk, Panther managed to avoid getting entangled, but only at the cost of losing her momentum and any chance to attack. Queen, Mona and Joker tensed, readying to intercept no matter which way he tried to break for.

But instead, when Black Mask raised his hand, it was holding a pair of smoke bombs. They cracked against the Mementos floor, and the area was engulfed in a thick, obscuring cloud.

“Queen! He’s going in your direction!” Oracle warned.

There was the sound of a scuffle, and Queen’s pained grunt. “Zorro! Garu!” Mona called out, his Persona’s wind spell violently ripping away the smokescreen.

Black Mask was gone, and they only caught a glimpse of Queen taking off after him. “Queen’s in pursuit,” Oracle confirmed. “Man, he’s quick, I don’t think she’ll be able to catch him before he hits the stairs down...” Groaning as they picked themselves up, the others listened with a sense of resignation. “Yeah, he’s gone. I can’t track him on another floor. It’s too dangerous to go by herself, so Queen’s headed back.”

A collective groan rose from the group.

“That asshole! What the hell!” Skull complained.

“So much for ambushing him...” Panther sighed, stretching.

Morgana’s subdued voice came from beside their leader, only loud enough for him to hear. “Sorry, Joker. I thought for sure it’d all get solved if we just caught him, but I was too reckless. You were right, it won’t be that simple.”

Joker hadn’t actually said that. Even he had assumed they would win if it came down to a battle. It had been the aftermath he’d been concerned about — prematurely, it seemed. “It’ll be okay. We’ll work something out,” he said finally.

But not, unfortunately, for the next while. Not with the school trip nearly on them.

~.~.~

**5B. September, interlude**

**Amamiya:** How have you been?   
**Amamiya:** Do you want to meet up again?   
**Amamiya:** My class is going on a school trip to Hawaii until the 12th. Hope we can talk after that.

Akechi had been ignoring those messages with great determination. He couldn’t deny a sense of relief knowing Amamiya was out of the city — the country — for four days. At the very least, Akechi could stop furtively glancing over his shoulder every time he had to pass through Ginza.

He needed to respond. There was only so long that he could dismiss his silence as just preoccupation with school or work. Any longer than this, and Amamiya would surely become suspicious...

...But did it matter? Wasn’t it already too late?

After all, Joker of the Phantom Thieves was none other than Ren Amamiya himself.

There was no mistaking it. Akechi had known from the start, even before Joker’s mask burned away and he caught a glimpse of his face. Even if his demeanor was different, something in his voice and mannerisms had been immediately recognizable on some deep, inherent level.

(When had he become so familiar with Amamiya? How could he have revealed so much of himself? How could he have been so stupid —)

And Amamiya had to know too, that it had been Akechi he and his friends encountered in Mementos. It explained so much. Why else would he have insisted on meeting Akechi so often? Why else bring up the Phantom Thieves so much? And that question — what would you do with the power to change people’s cognitions?

Even the first time they had run into each other... They had both been there for Kaneshiro’s Palace.

Although perhaps that meeting, at least, really had been just a coincidence. Even staggering under the weight of his own distrust, Akechi couldn’t imagine it had been anything but. It would be nice to believe that small kindness had been genuine — it fit the Phantom Thieves, didn’t it?

‘Are the Phantom Thieves just?’ That was the question their site posed.

They certainly believed themselves to be such. Akechi... didn’t disagree, per se. The human scum they had ruined deserved all that and more. There was something unspeakably ruthless about ripping apart someone’s mind and heart, leaving them but a cowering, weeping shell of their former self. Akechi wasn’t sure he could have ever come up with something so uncompromisingly terrible. But it wasn't as if he thought those sugars deserved better, and there was no doubt that the Phantom Thieves considered that justice.

They would surely consider Shido deserving of their justice as well...

Akechi shook his head sharply.

To begin with, that had obviously been a ploy to stall him and take him off guard. There was no need to consider it seriously.

But even if — if Amamiya had meant it, had understood what Akechi had let slip before, it wouldn’t be enough. Shido’s Palace was massive and overpowering, Akechi knew that much from the times he had visited surreptitiously. And he remembered the way Shido’s cold, knowing gaze had pinned him, when they finally met in person.

‘I have a certain knowledge of cognitive matters,’ Shido had said, looking at Akechi as if he somehow knew about his intrusions. ‘I will warn you only once — I’ve taken measures against any attempts to influence me in that realm.’

What kind of measures? Was it possible that Shido really did know what occurred within his Palace? Just how far did his knowledge of “cognitive psience” extend?

Certainly further than Akechi’s meager experience in the Metaverse. If he wanted to go against Shido, he needed to find out just what Shido knew and what he’d done to protect himself. He might have only one chance, and he needed to make it count.

The Phantom Thieves were ‘just,’ but there were also stupid and self-assured. They’d had Akechi outnumbered and surrounded, and yet they still managed to lose him. If they went against Shido with that kind of lackadaisy attitude, they would all die. A man like Shido wouldn’t hold back, to say nothing of his associates.

Because it wouldn’t end with Shido. Taking him down was all Akechi cared about, but he knew there were many others who would doubtlessly use their power and influence to take revenge. That was fine, he’d accepted that, but...

No, it was better that he work alone.

Shido was his target. He would end him alone and face whatever necessary alone. It was the best choice.

It didn’t matter if Amamiya had held out his hand or if he understood. Glancing at the open chat again, Akechi closed it without responding. He was still holding the phone when it suddenly began to ring, the screen showing only an enigmatic code name — ODIN.

As always, he took a deep, steadying breath before accepting the call, forcing his mind to blankness. “This is Akechi,” he responded succinctly.

There was no greeting in reply, as always. “I have new orders for you,” Shido said without preamble. “Pay attention, this is a vital and complex assignment. This is your chance to finally prove the full extent of your worth to our cause.”

“Yes, sir,” Akechi responded blandly, but his expression furrowed — along with the usual sneer speaking to Shido evoked.

“Your target is Okumura,” Shido went on. “He's proven incompatible with our ideals in the long term, and his use will soon run out. We will nip the problem he presents in the bud.”

Okumura had made a number of requests for Akechi’s services, not that he knew who or what was carrying them out. An impressively high number at that, quickly coming to match Ooe’s in volume in half the time. He was as stupid as he was vile, in Akechi’s estimation. His lack of discretion was obvious in other aspects too, and the media was beginning to buzz with scandalous stories about his illegal and inhumane policies.

It was only natural that the conspiracy had moved to cut him loose. But due to his knowledge of their internal machinations, they couldn't let him leave peacefully.

"I see,” Akechi said. “I will make sure his credibility is destroyed —”

“No,” Shido cut him off. “There are special orders this time. Instead of making his Shadow rampage, you will destroy it completely. Do you understand?”

Akechi’s frown deepened as he found himself hesitating to reply, for the first time in a long while. “Destroy his Shadow?” he repeated. “What will that accomplish? Sir.”

“Are you questioning your orders?” Shido responded immediately, his already cold tone growing sharper. It made Akechi grind his teeth, fear and anger warring queasily in his gut. “There's no need for you to know anything further, only do what you're told. Do you understand?”

This time, Akechi gave the expected, required answer. “Yes, sir. It will be done.”

“Good, I expect nothing less,” Shido said. “The timing must be precise. You will act only after the Phantom Thieves send their calling card to Okumura. The window to act will be narrow, so make your preparations now.”

“The Phantom Thieves?” Akechi asked — and winced, expecting another rebuke.

But this time, Shido seemed willing to indulge him or, more likely, to brag as it became clear as he went on. “Their public support has been brought to an all time high, thanks to our setup using Medjed. That means their fall from grace will be all the more spectacular. Once they become reviled for taking their justice too far, taking a strong stance against them will strengthen my position.”

‘So Medjed was his doing?’ Akechi thought. He hadn't been informed, but that was hardly surprising, given that he had only been under the conspiracy’s employ for less than half a year.

“We will have the poll for their next target rigged to put Okumura on top,” Shido continued, needing no reply. “Although that may be unnecessary, given his increasingly poor public image...”

“And once the calling card is sent, anything that befalls Okumura will be seen as their doing,” Akechi concluded.

“You understand the plan then,” Shido said. “Do not fail.”

The call ended with a sharp tone as he hung up. Lowering the phone from his ear, Akechi scowled at it. He had no intention of failing, but the constant threats still unsettled him. And none if that explained just what would happen when he went through with these strange new orders.

What happened when you destroyed a person’s Shadow? Well, if he had to guess... ‘A coma? Catatonic?’ Akechi thought. If changing a Shadow affected their mental state, temporarily or permanently, those seemed the likeliest outcomes.

‘Hmph, that's fine,’ he decided. ‘It'll restore itself eventually. Shadows always come back, right?’

And if it didn't... well, it was no worse than Okumura deserved, given all the lives he'd ruined and workers he'd driven to the brink and past.

(...Right?)

~.~.~


	6. September, second half

**6\. September, second half**

“He's at it again,” Oracle piped up irritably.

The others sighed in tandem. “Doesn't that guy get tired of following us around? What's even the point of it?” Skull complained, grinding his teeth.

“Like Joker said, maybe he's trying to see how we change hearts,” Panther suggested. She had pasted on an uncertain smile, but it was clear she didn't entirely buy that reasoning. In truth, Joker didn't either, even when he presented it back the first time Oracle had detected Black Mask tailing them through Okumura’s Palace.

“Would be easier if he just asked,” Skull muttered. However, everyone could imagine that their mysterious ‘rival’ wouldn't be to do that.

Queen frowned. “If that's the case, I suppose that's fine. It's not a secret we have reason to conceal from someone who already has access to the Metaverse,” she said. “But if there is another reason... It makes me uneasy.”

“Me too,” their newest member, Noir, admitted with a weak, rueful smile. “Although perhaps that is only because he has chosen to appear in my father’s Palace...”

“This is likely the only target of ours he could confirm ahead of time,” Fox pointed out, “due to the poll.”

Noir nodded in acknowledgement, but her expression was still uncertain. In truth, none of them were comfortable with the situation. None of them could quite put it into words or pin down a concrete reason. Black Mask had failed them several times already, and nothing untoward had occurred. He hadn't approached or made any move at all aside from following them. The Palace was no different between their visits, so he didn't seem to be doing anything when they weren't there either.

Joker didn't like it either, although his reasons were perhaps somewhat different.

“Maybe I should try talking to him again,” he suggested.

The uncomfortable silence made it clear that no one liked that idea at all. Mona’s expression was particularly displeased. But at the same time, no one had any better ideas either, and leaving the situation as it was didn’t sit right.

“Will he be willing to listen?” Queen brought up. “We ambushed him last time. He’s likely to suspect another trick.”

Several of them winced guiltily. Between the lack of any aggressive actions from Black Mask and Joker’s obviously sympathetic view of him, the others were beginning to feel like they had perhaps unfairly assumed the worst. (Which wasn’t really true — the fact that he was working for the conspiracy and causing rampages was reason enough to treat him with suspicion.)

“If everyone else stays in sight, that might be enough,” Joker suggested.

“You’re gonna have no backup for real then,” Skull said, crossing his arms with a scowl.

“I’ll keep my guard up,” Joker offered. “I can hold him off long enough for everyone to reach us.”

Queen sighed. “You are the leader, after all,” she said. “We’ll put our trust in you.”

Following her lead, the others nodded, though not without exchanging a few uncertain glances. They had reached the further corner of the level, and the path to the chamber had been cleared, so this was the best opportunity, before any of the Shadows or cognitions reformed. Nodding to his team, Joker headed down the hall at a slow, obvious pace.

The figures of the others had become small, down the hall, when Joker stopped and waited.

“He’s right around the corner,” Oracle reported, her voice only a secretive whisper in his mind, even though Black Mask obviously couldn’t hear her anyway. “But... it doesn't look like he’s going to come closer.”

Joker sighed quietly. But at least it didn’t sound like he was running away yet...

Clearing his throat, he started the second round negotiation. “Sorry about last time. Everyone was too high strung and overreacted,” he said. “This time, we’ll keep it one on one for real, just talking.”

He waited as the echo of his voice faded away, but the only answer was silence. “No movement,” Oracle relayed, still at a whisper.

Well, that was fine. Joker went on, “Before, you didn’t tell me what to call you. I don’t expect your real name or anything. All of us use code names ourselves. Do you have anything like that?” No response again, and after a pause, Joker nodded. “Then I’ll pick one for you. How about... Crow?”

The reasons were his black outfit and the way he was circling their party. But also, ‘crow’ sounded like it belonged in the group with ‘fox’ and ‘panther.’

“Hang on, why are we giving him a nickname?” Oracle protested, her voice jumping to its usual volume in indignation. “Another nickname, at that? That’s not what we were calling him. It sounds like... one of our code names! ...Wait. Joker, don’t tell me you’re going for the recruitment route?!”

“Wait, what?” Skull piped up.

Joker ignored them, despite the whispered squabbling that was still being broadcast to him. He thought he could feel something like annoyance radiating from around the corner, but there was no comment, so the motion passed, in a manner of speaking.

“Crow,” he said, “why are you following us?” He didn’t expect an answer from such a straightforward question, and he went on after only a short pause. “Is there something you want to know?”

He wasn’t sure whether he heard or felt it, but Joker was sure that ‘Crow’ had started from that. Did that mean he had guessed right? The petty argument at the back of his mind also fell silent as Oracle forcefully shushed the group. Slowly, a certain dark figure stepped out from around the corner.

But still, he didn’t say anything. His sharp gaze was almost a tangible weight.

“You can just ask, I’ll tell you,” Joker said.

He didn’t make any cliche ‘I come in peace’ gestures this time. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he clouched a little — and waited again. But as he’d half expected, Crow only shifted his stance uneasily, ducking his head as his thoughts raced. He was clearly considering it, weighing some invisible, unknown objectives, yet paralyzed by the same mental gridlock Joker was well familiar with.

They had been stuck like this too long already. In a burst of decisiveness, Joker thought, ‘I’m going for it.’ This time, he even had Queen’s permission.

“Do you want to know how we change hearts?” he offered. This time, he went on without waiting for a response. “It’s by stealing the Treasure that represents that person’s distorted desires. Have you seen them in the Palaces you’ve been too? They’re hidden deep inside, and at first they look like just formless light. But if you deliver a warning to the target, that their heart will be stolen, it takes a solid shape.”

Unintentionally, Crow had slipped into a pondering stance, one hand coming to his chin. It was a stance Joker was familiar with, having seen it multiple times — on Akechi. Crow was even nodding along slightly, deep in thought. It made Joker’s lips quirk up slightly.

Finally, it felt like they were actually making progress.

What else did he need to tell him? What had they had problems with? Ah, right. “Of course, sending the calling card raises the Palace’s alert level, so you can’t take the Treasure without a fight,” Joker said. “Palace rulers are really tough, much stronger than normal Shadows or even the people Shadows in Mementos. And you have to be careful when you fight them — if you go too far, you’ll end up killing them. And that can kill them in the real world too.”

The reaction was swift and obvious. Crow flinched visibly, taking half a step back as he stared at Joker in shock.

Joker nodded, in confirmation and because it was as he’d expected. Crow really hadn’t known, without someone like Mona to warn him. That was the reason Joker had wanted to tell him these things, before he accidentally caused something terrible.

Crow’s shoulders rose as he prepared to say something, only to look away, clawed fists clenching. Shaking his head sharply, he took another step back.

...Wasn’t this reaction a bit too strong?

‘Don’t tell me he’s already...’ Joker couldn’t bring himself to finish the thought. He reached out instinctively, but Crow didn’t even notice. He had continued to back away and finally, turning on his heel, made a break for it.

“Wait!” Joker called out, but he didn’t try to follow. He knew he wouldn’t catch up to him in time.

“Well, that went well,” Futaba muttered in his mind.

~.~.~

They called it a day and headed home early, despite not getting all much further in Okumura’s Palace. No one had been entirely up to more infiltration, their leader’s head clearly not in the game and Makoto looking troubled as well.

All the way home, he clutched his phone in his hand, glancing down at it, hesitating, and lowering it again, never quite making up his mind to send a message. It wasn’t like he had any idea what to write.

But he needed to do something. Ren’s worry for Akechi was beginning to outweigh his worry for Akechi’s reaction. Maybe it would be burning a bridge, but he was starting to feel like a real world confrontation was the only way they would be able to resolve this, before things went too far.

Or had they already? Had he hesitated too much?

Picking up on his unease, Morgana watched him closely as they finally returned to the attic. “Are you going to contact him?” he asked when Ren raised his phone again, finger hovering over the screen.

Ren nodded. “But I don’t know what to say,” he admitted.

“It’s a tough situation,” Morgana agreed, his distrust having softened over the months. “But you know, I’ve been thinking... maybe he already knows that it’s you. All you guys recognized Haru pretty easily, right? And he knows you pretty well. There’s a good chance he was able to tell, since he’s been close to Joker a couple times. Maybe that’s why he’s been willing to listen at all — because it’s you.”

That was something Ren hadn’t considered. “You think so?” he wondered.

Was Akechi in the same position as Ren, not wanting to doubt but unable to trust entirely, certain they both knew the truth but afraid to make the final step to confirm it?

Well, then, it was up to Ren as the leader and the elder to make the first step, wasn’t it?

But before he could act on his resolve, the device in his hand began to vibrate, the screen lighting up with the very name he had been thinking of. The notification of a new message appeared beneath the time. Having been staring in surprise, Ren scrambled to unlock his phone as it started to dim.

“What? Wait. Is it him?” Morgana demanded, meandering across the bed excitedly.

“It is,” Ren said, his brow furrowing it concentration. “It says...”

His voice trailed off.

**Akechi:** The Phantom Thieves   
**Akechi:** should pick a different target.

~.~.~

**6.5 End of September**

“He still hasn’t replied?” Makoto confirmed.

Ren shook his head, his lips pressed into a tight, unhappy frown.

There wasn’t any point in pretending — that had clearly been a thinly veiled warning. Not regarding Crow, who had yet to show the Phantoms any outward hostility, but regarding the intentions of his employers, the ones they were certain Okumura had some involvement with. What were they planning that he felt the need to caution them about it?

Makoto clicked her tongue irritably and closed her eyes for a moment, her expression almost pained. “I’ve been thinking about it, and I... might have a theory,” she admitted, “about why he warned us. I think... he might have been ordered to kill Haru’s father... and frame us for it.”

Haru’s horrified gasp was lost under Ryuji’s sound, “WHAT?!”

“You, you don’t really think that, right?” Ann demanded. “That’s just the worst case, right, Makoto?”

“No,” Haru spoke up unexpectedly. Casting her eyes down into her laps, she spoke quietly. “It would make sense. Those are the kind of people my father tied himself to. It was always too optimistic to believe they would just let him walk away. They must be trying to silence him before his change of heart makes him reveal something about them.”

Makoto nodded grimly. “That’s my thinking as well. And then there was... uh, Crow’s strong reaction to finding out what killing a Shadow will do, followed by that warning. It’s hard to imagine the two aren’t connected. It’s a bit of a leap, but I think this is the most likely situation. Framing us for it will be killing two birds with one stone.”

“They might have even rigged the poll to make sure Okumura was our next target,” Futaba muttered, her legs pulled firmly to her chest. “Stupid... I should have checked Mishima’s site, made sure it hadn’t been hacked...”

“It’s not your fault, Oracle,” Morgana said. “None of us considered this.”

“I can’t believe this! He’s gonna kill Haru’s dad just because some assholes told him to?” Ryuji snarled, pounding his fist against the tabletop. “I knew we couldn’t trust him!”

“Ryuji, quit it,” Ann chided without looking at him, her tense, miserable expression still aimed down at nothing in particular. “Ren’s right, we don’t know what his circumstances are. He’s trying to warn us, isn’t he?”

“Yeah, but still! Killing someone is just—”

“We decided we’d risk killing Kamoshida, remember?” Ann cut him off. Closing her eyes, she sighed. “We might have said it was just something that might happen, but we accepted it. We decided that killing him would be alright for our own reasons. We don’t have any right to act like we’re better than him.”

“But we still have to stop him,” Ren spoke up. “For his own sake as well.”

It wasn’t something he understood, but as always, his words seemed to cut through the tension and draw everyone’s attention. As the others turned to him, their uncertain expressions hardened into determination, cutting through the muddled atmosphere.

“Yeah. We have to save Haru’s dad!” Morgana agreed, his tail lashing.

“Let’s do this!” Ryuji cheered, pumping his fist. “We’re not gonna let those assholes use us like that!”

“For his own sake too, huh...” Ann repeated. She smiled tentatively. “I agree.”

Futaba and Yusuke nodded as well, and Makoto reached out to place a hand on Haru’s shoulder, who ducked her head, biting her lip. “Thank you, everyone,” she said quietly. “Thank you... so much...”

“The question is how, though,” Makoto said, always the voice of reason. “We can’t change targets, not when he’s going to sell Haru off. And even if we did, there’s no guarantee that would be enough to put them off.”

“I have an idea, maybe,” Futaba said unexpectedly. Uncurling herself, she reached for her laptop. “He stopped showing up at the Palace, but we can still try catching him in the real world. His name’s Goro Akechi, right? I looked him up. I’m pretty sure I’ve got his school and home address.”

How... illegal. And kind of terrifying.

“Futaba-chan, you’re... pretty scary,” Ann voiced everyone’s thoughts delicately. It didn’t help when Futaba replied with a grin, her glasses glinting ominously.

Makoto cleared her throat. “Then we’ve decided,” she confirmed, glancing around the assembled Phantom Thieves. Her gaze lingered on Ren, who nodded. “We’ll confront Akechi-kun in the real world. I’ll set up teams and a schedule. Futaba-chan, I’ll need your help.”

“Roger!”

As the attic filled with voices, arguing over the teams, comparing schedules, Morgana padded over to Ren and nimbly leaped onto his shoulder. “You okay with this?” he asked quietly, under the hubbub of the preparations. “I know you don’t like ambushing him, but...”

“I know,” Ren said, his voice just as low, as reached up to stroke Morgana with one hand. For once, the not-cat allowed it.

But even so, he couldn’t help pulling out his phone and opening the chat log again. His own messages stretched up in an unbroken column. It was pointless, really, but...

Morgana huffed. “Go ahead,” he said gruffly. “You’re the only one who’s been able to get through to this guy, after all.”

Ren smiled. Maybe it would make things more difficult, maybe it wouldn’t change anything, but he had to do this much at least. Quickly, he typed in a message — a last warning.

**Amamiya:** Sorry, but we can’t let this go. See you soon.

~.~.~


	7. October

**7\. October**

‘We’ll confront Akechi-kun in the real world.’

If only it was that simple.

They had managed to even just catch a glimpse of Akechi all of once, the first time staking out his expensive private school. But Akechi must have seen them too because he swiftly vanished into the crowd, one uniformed student among many.

He was a scholarship student, so his education must have been important to him, but it didn’t seem like he came back to school after that. If he went to his apartment — paid for by a confusing chain of shell companies and false accounts, according to Futaba — it was only after Ann and Makoto had been forced to abandon their stakeout well after midnight. He didn’t appear on any of the security cameras Futaba hacked either.

(Finding out her full capacity for stalking and invasion of privacy continued to be... eye opening.)

 **Futaba:** this suuuucks  
**Futaba:** how much evade does he have??  
**Futaba:** ლ(ಠ益ಠ)ლ

It wasn’t like they could keep up the wild goose chase indefinitely either. The deadline for Haru’s engagement was looming, and it was a desperate, gloomy group that gathered in the attic again.

“I’ve been thinking more about the situation,” Makoto started off, ignoring everyone’s sudden attention, “and I think the only opportunity we’ll have is when we send the calling card.”

“That’s how they’ll pin it on us, right?” Futaba said darkly. Her fingers tapped an uneven rhythm over her knees as she stared into the distance, lost in unhappy thought. “That’s why they’re waiting, they want us to send the card, so it’ll look like we did it.”

“Can we just... not send the card?” Ann suggested.

“I would imagine they would simply send a counterfeit one,” Yusuke said.

“Yes, we can’t stall too long, even if we were okay risking Haru’s engagement going through,” Makoto said. “However, this also gives us a window of opportunity, in a way. Akechi has probably been ordered to only act after the calling card is sent. He can’t wait too long after either, since the Palace will collapse once we steal Okumura’s heart. So for a certain period of time, we know where he will have to go.”

“Does he know that though?” Morgana wondered. “About Palaces collapsing after the Treasure is stolen, I mean. I don’t think Joker told him about that.”

“I’m not sure,” Makoto admitted — she had considered that point too. “But he was probably following us not because he wanted to ask something, but rather because he wanted to figure out the layout of the Palace ahead of time. That means he also thinks he’ll have to move quickly, maybe to do it before we steal the Treasure or right afterwards.”

“But we decide when we send the calling card, so we can lay a trap,” Ren finished her thought.

Understanding and excitement lit across the team’s faces. “Oh!” Ann exclaimed, brightening. “So we’ll ambush him in the Palace!”

“Now that’s what I’m talking about!” Ryuji cheered. “Running away won’t help him this time ‘cause then we’ll just steal the Treasure and let the Palace collapse before he can kill Haru’s dad!”

“Will the timing work?” Yusuke asked, more restrained in his reactions. “Is there a delay between sending the card and the effect beginning?”

Morgana hummed thoughtfully. “Not a lot?” he guessed. “I think it’s pretty immediate once the target reads the card. Normally, we can’t really control when they read it though. But if we have Haru deliver it, she can text us right away that it’s done.”

“Couldn’t we just steal the Treasure then, before, um, Crow gets there?” Ann suggested.

“That would work too,” Makoto allowed. “But I think it’s best if we have contingency plans in place. So here is what I’ve put together so far.” She paused as the others leaned in, listening closely. “Haru will deliver the calling card to her father and let us know once he’s read it. We will be waiting at Okumura Foods Headquarters and enter on her mark. Once inside, we’ll split into two teams, one to head to face Shadow Okumura immediately, the other to guard the entrance and stay on the lookout for Akechi. I don’t think there’s any way to stop Okumura from contacting the police once he gets the card, unfortunately...”

Lips pursed, she looked across the group for their reactions. “I know it’ll put us shorthanded compared to before, and I know it might... not be possible for Haru to join us. But I’m not sure how else we can handle it.”

“It’ll be fine! We did Kamoshida with just four of us,” Ryuji said decisively.

‘But it was close,’ Ren thought, remembering that battle with an unhappy grimace. And if they split into two groups... Haru wouldn’t be there, Futaba was support, so it would be only three to a group. They had all gotten much stronger since then, but...

“I understand, Mako-chan,” Haru added. “I did want to face my father, but I want to save him more. I’ll stay with him. And afterwards, I’ll warn him about the danger to his life.” He would have to go into hiding, most likely. Even his confession would likely have to wait, given the possibility of corruption in the police force.

“We can send a second card about that,” Makoto said. “It’ll keep your identity safe, and as long as he keeps it secret, it won’t raise the danger we’re in either.”

“I can keep an eye on both groups,” Futaba volunteered. “...But I can probably only buff one.”

Now that their course of action had been decided, the atmosphere lifted, and a cheerful bickering began about who would be on which team. (“Ann should go to deal with that guy, maybe he’ll get distracted by her rack.” “Better me than you, since he completely owned you in Mementos!”)

“Ren,” Makoto called out quietly, making her way over to him, “you want to go face Akechi, right? I admit, I have mixed feelings about it. If there’s any chance of talking him down, it’ll have to be you. But at the same time, there’s no denying you’re the strongest, and I would feel better if you were with the ones facing Okumura’s Shadow.”

“It’s okay! Everyone’s gotten really strong, and I bet Okumura’s a pushover,” Morgana assured her loyally.

It was a big change from his distrustful warnings when Black Mask first appeared. But Morgana knew how much it mattered to Ren — more than Ren could explain, really — and so did the others, in their own ways. Even if they didn’t understand his reasons, not that Ren himself did entirely, they all supported him as best as they could.

He was lucky, wasn’t he? Having so many great friends, who would stand by him.

He had never regretted his choice half a year prior, even when it had destroyed his life and left him adrift. It had been the right thing to do, after all. But still. Now... he was glad. It had been hard, and painful, but it had been worth it. His fellow phantom thieves and all the other confidants he had met in Tokyo were more than worth giving up his old life.

He had never regretted it. But it was so much easier, so much better, to do the right thing when you weren’t alone.

...Maybe that was why. He wanted to share with feeling of being supported with Akechi too, who looked so lonely whenever Ren tried to reach out to him.

“About that,” Ren said, already reaching up to rub the back of his neck sheepishly. “I can go alone.”

The twin unimpressed looks he received from Makoto and Morgana were frankly daunting. “Well, you know him best... Are you that confident it won't come down to a fight?” Makoto asked. Her skepticism was clear as she crossed her arms and shifted her weight to one side.

“That's not it. I'm not sure how it’ll go,” Ren admitted. “But even if we fight, I don't need to win, just stall him long enough for the rest of you to steal the Treasure. I can handle that.” Probably.

“Ren... Do you understand that, in the worst case scenario, you’re facing someone who is willing to commit murder for his goals? We have to assume he’ll be willing to kill you too,” Makoto said, frowning. “Don’t take this lightly.”

“He would have to beat me first,” Ren pointed out. He held up his hands as Makoto frowned at him sternly. “I’m not joking. Shadows want to kill us too, and we’ve fought a lot of them. I’ll be on my guard, so I won’t go down that easy. I’m prepared to fight, if I have to.”

Makoto studied him for a long moment, her mouth a thin line, but in the end, she nodded. “Fine,” she said, “but you’re taking Morgana at least.”

Glancing between her and the cat, and their matching obstinate expressions, Ren knew this was the best he would get.

“Alright,” he agreed. “...But be careful out there. I’m leaving the team in your hands, Queen.”

“We’ll win,” Makoto said simply. “For Haru’s sake.”

~.~.~

The only way to the Treasure was through the airlocks, and that was where Joker and Mona parted ways from the others. There wasn’t time for long goodbyes, not when every moment counted — the battle team had run onward with only a few terse words of encouragement. The sooner they changed Okumura’s heart and sent his Shadow back to the real him, the sooner the worst of the danger would pass.

It wasn’t long, sooner than expected, before Mona’s ears twitched, and he spun around to face the only doorway.

“He’s coming,” he confirmed.

But before he could make any other movement, Joker held up a hand and moved past him, toward the center of the chamber — but no further. He had listened to Makoto’s warnings, in his own way.

Soon, a familiar dark figure emerged from the corridor. He came to a stop well away from them, the sword held loosely in one hand. Even through the black helmet and the distance between them, Joker could feel his heavy, sharp gaze.

“...Get out of my way,” Crow spoke for the first time. His hollow, echoing tone was unreadable.

‘Are you really going to kill someone on their orders?’ ‘We won’t let you become a murderer!’ Joker considered and discarded possible responses. “We promised Haru to change her father's heart,” he said instead. “So we'll see it through.”

“Tch!” Crow clicked his tongue irritably. “You’re really like that, aren’t you? Always trying to help others, even going this far... How stupid are you?”

‘Didn’t you say you like that about me?’ ‘Aren’t you also doing this because of someone else?’ No, that really would get him killed...

“We can help you too,” Joker offered instead.

“Help? Me?!” Crow barked a short, derisive laugh. “What the hell makes you think I want, I need your help? I don’t! I have everything I need to reach my goal, on my own!”

‘But you’re alone.’ ‘But you don’t want to do this.’

“But you said there’s someone you want to bring to justice,” Joker recalled. “That’s what we want too. Why don’t we work together?”

He hesitated. Joker knew he must have considered it before, but even so, Crow hesitated for a moment at the offer — he wanted to accept it, at least in some part of himself. Unfortunately, that part alone was not enough. Shaking his head, Crow snarled, “What do you think you can even do? You have no idea what you’re up against!”

“We do know,” Joker objected, “the conspiracy... We just haven’t found their names yet.”

“You don’t know anything,” Crow snapped. “You don’t have any idea how far they’re willing to go, or what they’ll do to you, if you keep getting in their way. Just leave now and disband. If you lie low, they might let you go with just this.”

“With just killing Haru’s father, right? The Phantom Thieves of Heart will be framed and disgraced,” Joker said, keeping his tone as blank as he could.

“It’s better than losing your lives, or the lives of your families and friends,” Crow said. “Is that what you want? All of you have something to lose, don’t you? If you just keep your head down...”

‘Keep your head down for a year,’ that had been Sojiro’s advice too. It had been what everyone said Ren should have done that night when everything started too. But if he had, he would have never met the others. Never helped them escape their horrible situations, never helped all the others that were saved and given closure when Kamoshida, Madarame, Kaneshiro confessed.

It wouldn’t have been better. It wasn’t even a question.

“I can’t do that,” Joker said, firmly. “We can’t. Our will to fight is just as strong as yours. We chose to rebel and awaken our Personas, and... we even accepted the possibility of having blood on our hands.”

Thinking they could just talk it out had been naive. Equally, Crow’s determination matched theirs. He wouldn’t give up his battle or his justice just because Joker asked him.

“So that’s how it is,” Crow muttered, raising his sword. “Then there’s only one thing we can do.”

“Joker!” Mona warned.

But the leader only smiled — smirked. “Of course. It’s time to see who has the power to make their justice a reality,” he said. “If you win, we’ll leave, just like you said. We’ll disband. And if you ever ask us to, we’ll lend you all our power in making your justice a reality.”

“W-what?!” Mona stammered, snapping around to stare at him in shock. Across from them, Crow’s stance slackened as he surely took on a similar expression.

What did they think, he would just fight Crow to the death?

Even if they couldn’t agree to cooperate, even if Crow did something so unforgivable that they could no longer be friends, that didn’t make them enemies — no matter what Igor said about rivalry and a ‘malevolent will.’ No, especially because their supposed benefactor was insisting on it so strongly...

...Joker refused to become Crow’s enemy.

“It’s a good deal, right?” he pressed, spreading his hands. “No matter what your plans are, having more power in the Metaverse will help. But in exchange, if Mona and I win, you’ll be the one to ‘disband’ and you’ll work with us instead.”

Crow snorted derisively. “You still haven’t given up on that? But that’s fine... I’ll beat the futility of it into you! Arise, Loki!”

The black mask on his face burned away, revealing finally Akechi’s face, twisted into a dark, dangerous glare. Something black and white and malevolent appeared behind him — the same Persona they had caught a glimpse of that first time in Mementos. Even so, Ren met his gaze without flinching.

“Here he comes, Joker!” Mona called out, already summoning Zorro in response.

“I know,” Joker said quietly. “I’m ready.”

~.~.~

To put it simply, that wasn’t true. Joker hadn’t been ready, not really.

He was the strongest on their team, by a good margin, but Crow was stronger. Perhaps it should have been obvious, knowing he had been fighting alone all this time. Queen had been right that Joker underestimated the battle facing him.

However, she had been wrong too. While Crow didn’t hold back and attacked with a genuine, sharp anger (jealousy, because he knew too how much luckier they had been, able to rely on Mona and each other from the start), there was no killing intent in his strikes or his Persona.

He had never killed anyone... yet. Joker would keep it that way.

Even if Joker hadn’t been ready, losing wasn’t an option.

...That being said, it was only Scathatch’s immunity to Curse and her Endure skill that pulled him through, even with Mona’s healing and support. Staggering from the final blow and just barely remaining upright, Joker tightened his grip on his dagger and took the opening to counterattack.

“Gah! You...” Crow gasped, his sword clattering to the ground as his hand slackened. He staggered back, clutching at his midsection.

A wave of healing washed over Joker, letting his straighten and take a deeper breath, but he knew that Mona was at the limit of his magic too.

Fortunately for them, it was over.

Coughing raspily, Crow dropped to his knees, and the magic still on him began to fade quickly. With a sharp, heavy breath, he let his head hang, his shoulders slumping. Even though he didn’t expect a dirty trick, Joker waited a while longer, watching him carefully.

“...I get it, I’ve had enough,” Crow muttered finally. “It’s your win. Are you happy now?”

He sounded painfully bitter. “You still think we’re just going to all die, huh?” Joker guessed. Enforcing his will by force... he couldn’t say he liked it. Reaching up, he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “You can’t believe in us until we prove ourselves to you? Then there’s only one thing to do — give us a name. The newest member always picks the next target. That’s how we’ve been doing it, right?”

“Well, I guess so,” Mona agreed, somewhat dubiously. “You’re really serious about this, aren’t you?”

“He’s already got a code name, and a cool costume, right?” Joker said lightly. “He’s practically part of the team.”

“Crow, huh... Alright. Welcome to the team, Crow,” Mona said.

“You’re ridiculous,” Crow groused, but he didn’t protest, even when Joker approached and dropped down to a crouch in front of him.

“I’m pretty selfish,” Joker admitted. Reaching out, he dropped his hands on Akechi’s shoulders. When there was no retaliation forthcoming, he smiled. “But it’s working out pretty well for me. We’ve finally become teammates, so I promise — from now on, I’ll protect you.”

“P-pro—! Me?!” Akechi spluttered, staring at him in shock — at his frankly astounding audacity.

“As the leader,” Ren added quickly.

That was not the reason at all, and he could feel Mona shooting him a flat, unimpressed look. Ren’s smile widened.

“You really are a complete fool,” Akechi forced out, grinding his teeth.

But there was something tense and heavy fading out of him, right under Ren’s hands. It wasn’t just his imagination or something in Crow’s aura — the dark stripped pattern of his Metaverse outfit was changing, fading into white and bright red like Joker’s own gloves.

Akechi himself didn’t seem surprised, or to even notice. But Ren couldn't help staring as the black knight in front of him became a white prince. 

(That was a little... he fought down a rising heat, the tips of his ears burning.) 

Even if he didn’t quite understand how or why it happened, Ren knew what it meant — that, finally, after so much uncertainty and struggle, he had managed to get through to Akechi. Goro? They could be on first name now, right?

Chuckling to himself, without thinking, Ren wrapped his arms around his friend and hugged him tightly. It was finally, really alright.

“H-hey! Hey!” Goro protested, jabbing him violently in the ribs. “What do you think you’re doing? Get off!”

All it did was make Ren laugh harder with relief.

The space station shuddered violently around them, making him pull back. Both of them looked around instinctively, but the source was doubtlessly further in — at the center, where the others had finally finished their battle and taken Okumura’s Treasure. Standing, he pulled Crow to his feet as well and dragged him toward the exit. 

Despite Crow’s irritated, insistent tugging, Joker didn’t let go of his hand.

~.~.~

**Epilogue**

The name was Masayoshi Shido.

He was a complete scumbag of a human being — and the leader of the conspiracy. Akechi didn’t explain exactly how he became aware of Shido’s crimes, but their next target was decided. There was no doubt that this would be their biggest heist yet.

“But if he’s using Mom’s research to buff himself, we gotta be careful,” Futaba said, chewing nervously at the tip of her thumb.

“I’m concerned about it as well,” Makoto admitted. “But it could also be a bluff. He’s a politician, so it stands to reason that he is good at deception. Perhaps he was trying to warn you off precisely because he had no defense in the Metaverse.”

Glancing at her, Akechi frowned but didn’t disagree.

“The Metaverse is a cognitive world. Just the fact that he’s aware of his own Palace might have unexpected effects on its defenses,” Morgana pointed out.

Makoto nodded, her lips pressed into a thin, unhappy line. “Nonetheless, I think taking the offensive is our best chance,” she said. Pausing, she added, “No offense to Akechi-kun. I understand why you were cautious, but the chances are simply better with a team of nine.”

“I still think we’re all going to get killed,” Akechi said flatly. “But it’s not like I can stop you.”

He had repeated that token protest several times. However, he had also made no move to actually stop them or try to flee — despite the danger this course of action placed him, in particular, in.

“Are you going to be alright, Akechi-kun?” Haru asked. “You failed your mission against my father. Will they try to punish you somehow?”

Several of the group made noises of surprise, as if that possibility hadn’t occurred to them, but it had been something that weighed heavily on Ren’s mind. He had thought from the start that Akechi would need their — his — protection. He looked between Haru and Akechi closely.

“I’m not sure,” Akechi admitted. “But since Okumura disappeared immediately afterwards, they know there’s something more going on. They can tell you were tipped off somehow, and they’re scrambling for answers. Well, lucky for me, they think Okumura had an ally in their group who helped him, so they're all suspecting each other. They haven’t even contacted me yet, aside from cursing me out for failure when I reported in. If you intend to act, you’d be better quick about it, while they’re occupied. Otherwise, they’ll start taking more direct action against you.”

“I agree. There’s no time to waste,” Makoto said. “Taking down Shido is our priority. Are there any objections?”

The rule of the Phantoms — all decisions must be unanimous. With his own choice a foregone conclusion, Ren looked across the room to each of their teammates individually. Cat face unreadable, Morgana nodded immediately. Ann and Ryuji nodded too, and so did Yusuke, after a moment of his usual, careful deliberation. Offering a small smile, so did Haru. And finally, Futaba.

“Then it’s decided,” Ren said. “We’ll begin infiltration tomorrow.”

A cheer went up, before everyone seemed to remember there might still be customers in Leblanc down below and shushed themselves sheepishly.

Akechi was still scowling, unimpressed or perhaps troubled, as the group began to file out of Ren’s attic. It was a little funny to see him tense up more and more every time one of them clapped him on the shoulder or gave him a smile as they passed him — like an angry stray cat. It was also a little sad, leaving Ren smiling in a complicated way.

His expression only darkened when he caught Ren watching him. When they had met before, his polite mask had slipped enough for Ren to be aware of Akechi’s true, rather jaded, argumentative nature, but it was amusing to realize how much he held himself back. And he had seemed like such a pleasant boy, too...

“What are you snickering about?” Akechi grumbled. “You’re too easy-going.”

“It’ll be okay,” Ren assured him. “You’ll see. We’ll prove our justice to you.”

“Justice, huh...” Akechi muttered, turning away. “And is your justice is really satisfied with this? With just letting me join you all like this? I can’t imagine your lot approve of the rampages I caused.”

...He wasn’t wrong. The chat had exploded into a rather violent scuffle when Ren casually dropped the fact that he’d gone ahead and recruited their ‘rival’ as their newest team member, along with promising him the pick of their next target.

In the end, there were indeed several members of their group who did not approve, vocally. But they had also run into some very real logistical issues that left them spinning their wheels unhappily — namely the fact that a Metaverse crime like making someone go out of control temporarily was simply outside the limits of the law, and also the fact that they didn’t really have a way of punishing Akechi, since he had no Palace and was perfectly capable of simply running away from them if it came down to it.

In other words, they had no idea what to do with Akechi, so Ren’s ‘plan’ won by default.

Well, it wasn’t as if he didn’t see their point.

“That wasn’t right,” Ren agreed. “Those people hadn’t done anything wrong, and someone could have gotten seriously hurt or even killed. Even Haru’s father... I’m glad it didn’t get any further than that.”

Akechi didn’t reply or even face Ren, but the miserable tension was clear in the taut line of his shoulders.

“But everyone makes mistakes,” Ren added. “That’s why we have friends to set us right.”

“Friends?”

“Yeah. We’re friends, aren’t we?”

In the middle of turning to shoot back some disparaging remark, Akechi had to pause as he sought some way to refute that. But they had both gone out of their way to spend time together, tried to help each other in their own ways, and even shared things they hadn’t told others. Trying to deny it was futile, and realizing that, Akechi started to flush an annoyed, humiliated red.

It was very tempting to tease him, but fortunately, Ren wasn’t the teasing type. Turning the conversation back to the original topic, he went on, “The important thing now is to make up for it — by stopping the conspiracy from hurting anyone else. And that’s what we’re going to do. We’ll be counting on you, Crow.”

He expected something like ‘We’ll see if you can keep up’ or another surly dig at their optimism. But Akechi only huffed — and nodded slightly.

“...We’ll see it through,” he agreed. “I’ll... be counting on you. Joker.”

Catching sight of Ren’s beaming grin, Akechi flushed deeper and quickly spun around. With a barked, perfunctory goodbye, he all but dashed out of the attic, and the front door bell jingled a moment later, signaling his departure.

“Stop smirking,” Morgana grumbled from the bed. “You’re way too pleased with yourself.”

He yowled unhappily as Ren retaliated by petting him firmly.

Why shouldn’t he be pleased with himself? After all, he had gotten everything he wanted. The only thing left was to defeat Masayoshi Shido, and Ren knew with absolute certainty — they wouldn’t lose, not when they were all fighting together.

~.~.~


End file.
